Mortgage rates drop again

WASHINGTON — Mortgage rates around the country edged down this week, good news for the housing industry, one of the few bright spots in a mostly lackluster economy.

The average interest rate on a fixed-rate 30-year mortgage dipped to 5.82 percent for the week ending April 18, Freddie Mac, the mortgage company, reported Thursday in its weekly nationwide survey. This week's rate was down from last week's rate of 5.85 percent.

In the middle of March, rates on 30-year mortgages declined to a record low rate of 5.61 percent. That rate was the lowest since Freddie Mac began tracking 30-year mortgages in 1971. Freddie Mac reports that the rate is the lowest since the early 1960s.

Low mortgage rates propelled home sales to record levels last year. Some economists believe home sales this year could turn out to the second- or third-best year ever.

For 15-year fixed-rate mortgages rates fell to 5.12 percent this week, compared with 5.17 percent last week. Rates for one-year adjustable mortgages nudged down to 3.79 percent, from 3.80 percent registered in the previous week.

This week's mortgage rates do not include add-on fees known as points. Each loan type carried an average fee of 0.6 point this week.

A year ago, rates on 30-year mortgages averaged 6.94 percent, 15-year mortgages were 6.42 percent and one-year adjustable mortgages stood at 4.95 percent.